Lawn-edge cutter



C. M. BAUER LAWN EDGE GUTTER F'iled May 5, 1924 6- 1N VENTOR WITNESS Patented Jan. 20, 1925.

UNITED STATES CARL M. BAUER, 0F P ORTLAND, OREGON.

LAWN-EDGE GUTTER.

Application led May 5, 1924. Serial No. 711,121.

To all @071.0072 t may concern:

Be it known that I, CARL l/I. BAUER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Portland, in the county of Multnomah and State of Oregon, have invented a new and useful Lawnlldge Cutter, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to lawn edge cutters in which a spur wheel and a plowshare are attached to a frame, the spur wheel preceding and marking out astrip of sod, the plowshare following and lifting the strip to one side.

The objects of my invention are to produce a device which is very convenient 'to operate and which saves: time and labor in trimming a lawn adjacent: to a concrete walk.

Other objects and advantages are to be found in the construction and arrangement of parts as will be described in the specification and particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

1 attain these objects with the mechanism Iillustra-ted in the accompanying drawing, in

which Fig. 1 is a side view of my Vapparatus in operative position.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the under side of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a detail of the working head of the frame, the spur wheel and plowshare being omitted- Fig. 4 is a section through Fig. 1 along the line 4.-4.

Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

The present practice. in trimming a lawn adjacent to a concrete walk is to use a spade or spade-like instrument and to dig a small groove step by step--a rather tedious operation. After the groove has been cut and the grass begins to grow out again, the groove must be cleaned with a spade or trowel and the over hanging grass must be trimmed by hand with a pair of grass shears, this again is a tedious and frequently 'back breaking task. In such cases l employ the following device.

I use the two sticks 1 and 2 to form the two opposing sides of a substantially rectangular frame. At one end the two sticks are connected by a handle 3; rigidity and spacing at the other end is maintained by a bolt 4 traversing a pipe sleeve 5. .Attached to the outside of the sticks at the last-named end are the two flat bars 6 and T which project substantially beyond the ends of the sticks and form bearings for the shaft 8. Firmly mounted on the shaft, between the bars 6 and 7, is a rubber covered roller 9. One end of the shaft proceeds about two or three inches beyond the bar 6 and has affixed to the terminal the spur wheel 10, the spurs of which have cutting edges on that side which is nearest to the roller 9. Riveted to the bar 6 is a thin plate of steel 11 of which the most important feature is the downwardly projecting knife blade 12. This knife blade has partly the function of guiding the appara-tus along the edge of the conc-rete walk and partly of cutting and loosening the sod from the. concrete, for which latter purpose the edges of the knife blade are sharpened at 13. Following behind the spur wheel, and lifting the strip of sod cut by the knife blade and Jche spur wheel, is a plowshare 14. The heel 15 of the plowshare is deflected in a suitable manner to throw the strip of elevated sod over onto the walk from whence removal is an easy matter. Connection between plowshare and sticks is accomplished by means of the straps 16 and 17 which cross the sticks at the upper and lower side respectively and are clamped to said sticks by means of the boltsf18; this method of fastening enables the operator to shift the plowshare either farther toward the handle or toward the spur wheel as convenience dictates. The plowshare is riveted to the downwardly extending arm 19 of the strap 16 and, in case one plowshare wears off, another can easily be riveted in place.

Where the groove is newly made, the pressure of the spur wheel against the sod will cut any over hanging grass blades, so that the edge will present a trimmed appearance without any additional work, but in an old groove the grass cannot be cut in the same way and the detail illustrated in Fig. 3 is requisitioned into use. This detail consists of a fiat bar of steel 20 which is pivoted to the stick 1 by means of the bolt 21; after proceeding parallel to the stick, past the shaft 8 with a suitable kerf 22 in the bar to accommodate the shaft, said bar Ibends parallel to the shaft toward the spur wheel and, on reaching the latter, splits into two curved shearing prongs 23 which proceed parallel to the plane of the spur wheel and have the upper edge 24 sharpened whereby the grass blades yare .severed through vxshearing faction, with the spur wheel.v An adjusting screw 25 in the bar 6 and the steel plate ll secures l close shearing Contact between the ,prongs Where thej prongs are not required as in cutting-.a new 23 and. the spur wheel 10.

groove said prongs can be thrown backward into the position indicated,bythefdotted;

lines 26 in FigQ. For the sake of convenience the combination, ort ,elements at the. end of` the Y.sticks opposite thevhandle mayy also be Adesignated as workinghead. ,y

Having `thus described `my invention it will be .seen that. my 1objects havebeen-ac-` i complished and,- though I have shown the preterred forni of constructioinI reserve to myselfthe rightto make minor changes provldingI do not-contravene thejspirit Yand principle of .my invention I claim: l. In al lawn-.edge` cuttertheeoinbination of a tra-Ine, ahandle,vand a workinghead, said i worlnnghead comprising; a guiding, knifepro]ect1ng downwardly ronrwthe.

frame, a roller ,at oneside ofthe guiding knife. andv 1n front of thefraine a spur wheel .at the other, side Jof lthe guiding ,kni1e,s

shearing prongs, anda plowshare.

Q. In :a lawn 1edge ,cutterfthe combination` of a frame, a. handle, and a workingihead, said working.head` comprising a guidingknfe, a roller, `a spur. wheel, shearing prongs vcooperating ,with the ,i spur A wheel,`

and asplowshare.

3. vIn alawn ,edge cutter, lthe combination of a frame, a handle,` and a working Ahead,

said .working head comprisinga guiding` knife, a .rollerpa spur wheel cooperatively.. connected i with the roller, shearing ci prongs. pressing againstthezsidecof the spur-.wheel between guiding knife and -spur wheel, and a plowshare.

4. In a lawn edge cutter, the combination of a frame, a handle, and a working head, said working head comprising a guiding knifefa roller, a spur wheel in laterally spaced relation to the guiding knife, shearing prongs, and: a plowshare disposed in the space between guiding knife and spur wheel and rearwardly thereof. i

5. In .alawn edge cutter, the combination ot a fra1ne,-a handle,.and a workil'ig head,

said working headV comprising, a guiding knifepa roller, a spur wheel in latenall)VV `spacedrelation to the guidingiknife, shear spaced relationto the guiding knife, shear` ingprongsnind a plowshare disposed in the Space between guiding knife and spur wheet and rearwardly;thereotrsaid rearward disi tance being variable/.w

7. In a lawn edge cutter,.the combination` of a frame, a handle, and a.' working head,

said working head comprising a guiding` knife,'ja roller, a spur wheel, shearing prongs, and a plowshare, `and straps for attachinoF said lowshare to the frame` said Vstrapsfbeingadjustabl)` Amounted on the .frame Signedabyflne at Portland, Oregon, this i 29th day of April, 1924.

CARL' M. BAUER. 

